Government announces social media restrictions for under-16s: key takeaways

The Government has announced plans to introduce a ban on social media access for under-16s as part of a wider package of online safety measures aimed at children and young people. This follows a consultation, titled ‘Growing Up in the Online World’ which closed at the end of May.  

In a progress statement, published yesterday, the Government laid out the key tenets of its plan. However, there remains limited detail at this stage on how the ban and associated measures will be implemented in practice.  

Key takeaways 

Social media access 

Under the proposals, under-16s would be banned from accessing in-scope social media services. 

The Government has not yet provided an exhaustive list of platforms that will be subject to the ban. However, it has confirmed that it intends to apply an Australia-style model, referring to the similar ban put in place in that country in 2025. This would capture user-to-user services whose purpose is to enable social interaction and allow users to post material alongside algorithms. Platforms likely to fall within scope include Facebook, Instagram, X, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube. 

A limited set of exemptions is expected to apply, including educational services, e-commerce platforms and music streaming services. Messaging services such as WhatsApp and Signal would remain outside the scope of the ban. 

Restrictions on 'risky' features for under-16s 

The Government has also identified a number of features and functionalities within online services that it considers higher risk for children and young people. Under-16s would be prevented from accessing features such as stranger communication and the ability to create livestreams, including on services that are not subject to the wider social media ban. This means providers of online services – including gaming platforms - will need to disable certain functionalities for younger users. 

AI chatbots 

 AI chatbot services primarily designed to provide sexual relationships will not be available to under-18s. General-purpose AI assistants would remain accessible, although age verification would be required to access sexually explicit functionality. 

Stronger age assurance requirements 

Companies will be required to implement ‘highly effective age assurance’ checks. The Government has asked Ofcom to conduct a rapid assessment of what constitutes ‘highly effective age assurance’ and publish its findings by October. The Government has stated that any age assurance measures should be privacy-preserving and proportionate. 

Additional protections for 16- and 17-year-olds 

While 16- and 17-year-olds would continue to have access to social media services, certain features, including stranger communication and livestreaming, would be restricted by default. 

The Government has also committed to exploring easier and more secure ways for young people to prove their age online. 

Ofcom enforcement 

The Government has stressed that any restrictions must be enforced rigorously and has instructed Ofcom to publish updates on its enforcement strategy and outcomes. 

What happens next? 

The Government has said it will publish a further update by 16th July, setting out its position on a number of outstanding consultation proposals, including: 

• Raising the age of digital consent 

• Additional default protections for 16- and 17-year-olds 

• Measures to address circumvention through VPNs 

The first regulations relating to social media age restrictions are expected to be laid before Parliament by the end of 2026, with the Government aiming for the first restrictions to come into force in Spring 2027. 

IAB view and next steps 

IAB UK fully supports the Government's objective of ensuring that children have safe, age-appropriate experiences online. However, much of the detail of how this ban will work in practice still needs to be decided.  

We will be closely monitoring how the proposed regulations, technical requirements and enforcement expectations develop, particularly where they impact ad-funded businesses or services that rely on advertising revenue. 

The proposed changes to raising the age of digital consent remains a key focus area for the IAB, given the implications for the wider online advertising ecosystem, so we await further detail on this in the further update in July.  

We will continue to engage with Government and regulators to ensure any new measures are proportionate, targeted and avoid unintended impacts on the ad-funded digital ecosystem.